Chinese And Indian Troops Reported Contacts At The Himalayan Border But Beijing Rejects Recognition

Himalayan illustration (Photo by Simon Berger on Unsplash)

JAKARTA - Indian and Chinese troops clashed on the Himalayan border - a location that became the disputed land of the two countries. And this is the first known incident between two nuclear-armed Asian powers in nearly two years.

India's Ministry of Defense said soldiers from both sides suffered minor injuries in the fighting. The gun battle took place last Friday in the Tawang Sector in India's northeastern region of Arunachal Pradesh.

The 2,100-mile (3,379-kilometer)-long border has long been a dispute between New Delhi and Beijing. Tensions escalated sharply in June 2020 when an empty-handed battle between the two sides resulted in the deaths of at least 20 Indian soldiers and four Chinese troops in Aksai Chin-Ladakh.

Quoted from the BBC, Indian Defense Minister Rajnath Singh accused China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) troops of trying to cross the actual control line (LAC) - the de facto border of the two countries.

The next confrontation led to a physical row in which the Indian Army bravely prevented the PLA from breaking into our territory and forced them to return to their posts, Singh said, claiming there was no serious injury on the part of India.

The two countries immediately held a meeting on December 11. This issue is also being handled through diplomatic channels, he added.

China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs did not directly acknowledge the incident at a press conference scheduled regularly on Tuesday.

"As far as we know, China-India border areas are generally stable, and both sides have maintained smooth communication on border-related issues through diplomatic and military channels," said spokesman Wang Wenbin when asked about India's statement about the incident.